Sunday, May 23, 2010

That's a Wrap! How to Build a Gift Wrap & Ribbon Work Station! :-)

I have to admit I have wanted a gift wrapping station for a LONG time, but will also admit I have been using a tote to hide away all my gift wrapping goodies.  I had put my desire for a wrapping station on the back burner when I happened to be back reading some older posts and found this post from Kate @ Centsational Girl.  She is such a crafty lady!  She said she had looked and looked for a organizational center for her wrapping stuff when she realized how talented she was and decided she could build her own... OK, she didn't say the part about her being talented, I added that part because I think she is, but she did come up with a great plan! :-)  I took her idea and added to it a bit.  Hope you like it Kate! :-)























I started out with the same material list: (I got it all at Lowes)
You'll need the following to build the one above.
2' x 4' x 5mm piece of birch plywood $7.94  this is for the back of the organizer
1" x 3" x 8' pine (Kate used poplar, the pine was a bit cheaper so I went with it) You need two. $5.94 (for 2)  This will be used to frame the sides and bottom of the organizer
1/2" x 4" x 2' poplar (1 piece) this is for the middle shelf with the holes $2.94
cup hooks (free for me, I already had them)
9 dowel rods 3/8" x 48"  (Kate used 36"....I'll explain why I got longer ones later) $9.92
2" nails (I had those too)
D rings to hang it up $2.50
primer & paint (I already had these)
Grand Total  $29.24 (much cheaper than the ones I've seen online, plus this one is bigger and built out of real wood)

Ok, I started with this:

First I measured the sides of the plywood and cut my 1" x 3" x 8' pine that length x 2. (one for each side) I pre-drilled the holes for the nails with a drill bit a little smaller than the diameter of the nail. You do this so the wood doesn't split. (nothing worse than starting a project and having the wood split! Yikes!)  After you get the sides nailed on, you measure for the bottom....the space inbetween the two sides. Don't nail that piece in just yet, you'll need to drill some holes partially through it that your dowel rods will rest in.  You should now have a back and two sides all nailed together and your bottom piece loose to drill. Next take a roll of wrapping paper and lay it down inside so you'll know where to install the middle shelf, mark where it will go. (you'll want to make sure it's level before you attach it later) You want it to be a bit higher than the length of the paper. Like this.......

Next I determined where I wanted to place my dowel rods that the paper will slide onto.  The middle shelf is wider than the bottom shelf, so you'll want to make the two pieces of wood flush in the back and hold them together with a couple of clamps so they don't move while you're drilling for your dowel rods. (the wide piece goes on top) You could cut the middle shelf to the same depth as the bottom piece if you want, but I just left it wider so it gave me a little room to put my tape etc on.  You want the holes in the wider piece to go all the way through, but not the holes in the bottom piece.I wanted 7 rolls of paper in my organizer (that's why I got more dowel rods than Kate), so I am drilling seven holes. :-)  Just mark them out on your top (wider) piece, but make sure you're putting them where they'll be centered on the bottom piece too.  See that long line I marked on the wood....it's showing me where the bottom piece of wood is so I'll know where to center the holes on the top piece.

I used a 1/2" drill bit so the 3/8" dowel rod would slide through the holes with ease.  Since I didn't want the drill bit to go all the way through the bottom piece of wood, I held it up against the side and marked where I wanted the drill to stop with masking tape. Once you get to the masking tape, stop drilling and you won't go all the way through the bottom piece of wood.

This is what your wood should look like when you're done.  The wide piece should have the holes all the way through and the narrow, bottom piece, should only be drilled about halfway through. (so your dowels don't fall to the floor!) lol  See the bottom shelf in the background, it only has divets in it, not complete holes. :)

Here's a picture of it after I installed the bottom and middle pieces of wood. (I pre-drilled before installing those too)  The dowels go through the paper and rests in those holes in the bottom piece we didn't drill all the way through.  I put cup hooks on the side pieces of wood and put dowel rods through them to hold all my lovely rolls of colorful ribbon!  The next thing I did differs a little from the original design.  Kate bought shorter dowel rods so hers come a little above the middle shelf, but I bought longer ones (48") because I wanted to be able to stick gift bags behind them.  This works fine as long as you keep your ribbon inbetween the dowel rods.


Here I've primed and painted the whole thing out in white.  Are you all as anxious when you're doing something like this as I am? It's not even on the wall yet and I'm already trying it out! LOL 


I installed D rings on the top corners on the back to be able to hang it.  I made sure I screwed into the side pieces of wood so it would be sturdy enough to hold the weight of the organizer.  I used anchors in my drywall too.

I put all my pretty ribbon on the dowel rods and secured the ends of the ribbons with corsage pins...holds the ribbon in place and makes for a much neater looking organizer. :-)


Here are pictures of the finished product.  After I got it all built and put up on the wall, I decided to add a row of cup hooks on the bottom edge too, I have loads of gift bags!!  I hung it behind my utility room door...totally useless space........until NOW! :)


So this is the finished product....hope you like it! (Kate, how'd I do?! LOL) Oh, I have since moved my curly ribbon bows down into one of my gift bags, I just stuck those there and forgot to move them for the picture. :0)
Blessings & Hugs
Melissa
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DIY Day @ ASPTL
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34 comments:

Crystal Rose Cottage said...

OK....Now I know what you were doing! That is a really cool gift wrap center! You are so good at those kind of things! You really know your way around a saw and a hammer girl!~Hugs, Patti

Susan @ Oh My! Creative said...

This is really great - I could sure use one for all my wrapping stuff.

Anonymous said...

Great job!! :)

Sweet Bee Cottage said...

How fabulous! I think you are pretty clever and talented too!

Angela Richardson said...

What a good idea! You did a great job building it. Well done and keep those ideas coming.
Siles,
Angela.

Cindy@shabbynsweet said...

Hi, What a wonderful idea. I could do with one of these myself. What a great job.

Robyn said...

WELL oh my look at the lady with the tool belt on! THAT is one FABULOUS project! Now I want one too! It's gorgeous and so useful!

I think if I were to ask for one right now while Matt is neck deep in the middle of projects for me he may not be too happy! LOL

Scribbler said...

This is the cleverest thing I have ever seen! You should patent your design and sell it! I saw something not nearly as nice at HL for around $80!
Scribbler
http://scribbler-unfocused.typepad.com/

Decor To Adore said...

Oh you are amazing my friend! What a fabulous DIY transformation~well done!

Jen said...

Oh my goodness,this is fantastic!!! I have never seen one of these before! I need something like this so badly to save me from my bag full of scrunched up bags, torn rolls and unruly ribbon! Would you mind if I posted this on my blog, with a link to your blog of course ;) I am not as clever as you but my dad is a carpenter and this is going to be my next birthday present from him ;)!

Rory from Tools Are For Women Too! said...

Nice project. I would love it if you would link this up in Modern Craftswoman Monday. Very well done. Rory

Lori E said...

This is so cool but the best thing is that it is behind a door. Brilliant. I might add a pair of scissors and some tape.

FairfieldHouse said...

Melissa,

What a beautiful way to organize much needed supplies! Wonderful job. I think you should sell these on etsy!

Your Friend,
Deborah

amariaf2000 said...

You should make these and sell them on Etsy! Awesome ~ but I know I'd never make it for myself...although I would buy one... :)

~angela @ peonypatch
www.mccalled.com/peonypatch

Cassie said...

Oh...this is a fantastic project!!!!
I love it!!!!
=)

Kate Riley said...

Fantastic girlfriend ! I absolutely love that you added little hooks to the bottom for gift bags . . . brilliant !

Kate

Rory from Tools Are For Women Too! said...

Thank you for linking your gift wrap station project to Modern Craftswoman Monday. I thought it was terrific and I have featured it in a post that will be published tomorrow morning. Feel free to grab a button if you want. Rory

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Really a wonderful project~ useful and looks great, too!

cinnibonbon said...

Ha!!! I love it. I so need to get hubs to whip this up. Thanks for sharing it. It's too lovely.

Farah said...

Hello, I just saw your blog and your last post inspire me very much, I really need something like this for my daughter and I hope I can do it... heartly thanks for sharing

http://craftaworld.blogspot.com/

Here its my blog , hope you like it

Just Trying To Save Money said...

So Cute!! I wish I would make one, my gift wrapping stuff is all over the place!!

I am your newest follower!

www.justtryingtosavemoney.com

Amanda @ Healthy House on the Block said...

I've been wanting to make one of these myself for quite sometime! So THANK YOU for the awesome tutorial! It turned out wonderful! I will definitely be giving it a try. :)

Unknown said...

I love this!! You did awesome. I need to make me one of these.

Alison @ Welcome Sunshine Home said...

This is excellent! I love that you added hooks for gift bags. I'll have to think about adding hooks to my organizer...


Alison
http://welcomesunshinehome.blogspot.com/

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Missy,
This is amazing! I love it! Very impressive that you made your own!!!

Carrie @ Dittle Dattle said...

This is fabulous! Who couldn't use a little help organizing their gift wrap?!?!?

I would be honored to have you add it to my blog party

Amaze Me Monday Blog Party

Green Door Girl said...

great job! I really like the bag holders and the ribbons across the top, I am going to make one that is horizontal, but I really like the vertical look!

Jaymee said...

What a great idea!!! I love it, and you inspired me to create one too! Thanks so much!

Samantha said...

Awesome!! I think my favorite are the hooks at the bottom for the gift bags! I just found you through Thrifty Decor Chick :-)

Anne said...

That's awesome! Love it.
How do you get new gift wrap rolls on?

Joy in the Journey! said...

I LURVE this! I was so excited by this idea!

What a great idea for that silly space behind your laundry room door!

I am with Anne though ... how do you get new rolls on!?

My Cottage Charm said...

Anne and Kicking up dust...you put the rolls on by pulling up the dowel rods...sliding on your roll and then sliding the dowel back down. :) easy peasy!
Thanks for your comments!
Missy

Sawdust Girl said...

My goodness you've been busy! Love this super smart idea. I need one! (hint hint) :-)

Fancy said...

Amazing job, very professional looking! I would need about 5 of those though. Once I've whittled down my supply, I will be doing this!!

P.S. Just started following your blog, love it!

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